1. Field
This field is generally related to service allocation in a data communication network.
2. Related Art
Many applications, such as data storage, processing, and presentation applications, utilize a communication network in their operation. The communication network may, for example, provide a network connection that allows data to be transferred between two geographically remote locations. To produce the network connection, outside service providers may utilize a network spanning multiple network devices from different vendors.
To implement a network application, a business may request that the service providers maintain a network service at a particular service level, such as a specific level of bandwidth, latency, or jitter. For example, a business may request an Ethernet connection between two of its locations with a bandwidth of 400 Mbit/second.
While utilizing network services is beneficial in some respects, it also makes applications more dependent on the underlying network services supplied by outside service providers. Because of this dependency, some businesses may have difficulty requesting a network service that meets the requirements of their applications. For example, applications may require different service levels at different times. This difficulty may make businesses reluctant to move their applications into the cloud or to utilize outside service providers for their network services.